Frozen sections; a systematic review
Reviewed by Stuart Clark

This systematic review and meta-analysis looked at 5 studies assessing the impact of intraoperative frozen section analysis on final margin status, locoregional recurrence and survival in patients with an oral squamous cell carcinoma. The analysis showed no significant difference in the pooled estimates for clear margins, positive margins or close margins between the frozen section and clinical examination cohorts. From this, they concluded there is no clear advantage of intraoperative frozen section analysis over gross examination alone. Needless to say there was significant heterogeneity in the study design, follow-up duration and frozen section methodology. There are also varying methods behind frozen section sampling which vary greatly amongst surgeons, institutions and even countries.

Utility of frozen section pathology in oral squamous cell carcinoma: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Armstrong LTD, Beech NM, Breik O, Batstone MD.
INT J ORAL MAXILLOFAC SURG
2026;55(1):1–9.